William Key Bond (October 2, 1792 – February 17, 1864) was a three-term

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

from

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

from 1835 to 1841.

Early life and career

Born in St. Mary's County, Maryland, Bond attended schools at

Litchfield, Connecticut Litchfield is a town in and former county seat of Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 8,192 at the 2020 census. The boroughs of Bantam and Litchfield are located within the town. There are also three unincorpora ...

including

Litchfield Law School The Litchfield Law School of Litchfield, Connecticut, was the first independent law school established in America for reading law. Founded and led by lawyer Tapping Reeve, the proprietary school was unaffiliated with any college or university. (Wh ...

where he studied law. He moved to

Chillicothe, Ohio Chillicothe ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Ross County, Ohio, United States. Located along the Scioto River 45 miles (72 km) south of Columbus, Chillicothe was the first and third capital of Ohio. It is the only city in Ross Count ...

in 1812. There, he joined a company of the Ohio Militia during the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...

. In July 1813, he was part of the Expedition of Governor Meigs for the relief of

Fort Meigs Fort Meigs was a United States fortification along the Maumee River in what is now Perrysburg, Ohio during the War of 1812. The British Army, supported by Tecumseh's Confederacy, failed to capture the fort during the siege of Fort Meigs. It is n ...

, which had been besieged for a second time by General Henry Procter and

Shawnee The Shawnee are an Algonquian-speaking indigenous people of the Northeastern Woodlands. In the 17th century they lived in Pennsylvania, and in the 18th century they were in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, with some bands in Kentucky a ...

chief

Tecumseh Tecumseh ( ; October 5, 1813) was a Shawnee chief and warrior who promoted resistance to the expansion of the United States onto Native American lands. A persuasive orator, Tecumseh traveled widely, forming a Native American confederacy and ...

. On the evening of the second day's march, his regimental commander Colonel Ferguson convened a court martial for a member of the regiment, and appointed Bond as Judge Advocate, in his first appearance as a lawyer. He returned to Chillicothe and was

admitted to the bar An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...

Congress

Between March 4, 1835, and March 3, 1841, Bond served in the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

– as an

Anti-Jacksonian The National Republican Party, also known as the Anti-Jacksonian Party or simply Republicans, was a political party in the United States that evolved from a conservative-leaning faction of the Democratic-Republican Party that supported John Qu ...

to the Twenty-fourth Congress, and as a Whig to the Twenty-fifth and Twenty-sixth Congresses. During his final term, he served as chairman of the Committee on Public Expenditures. He declined to be a candidate for renomination to the Twenty-seventh Congress, instead moving to Cincinnati and continuing the practice of his profession.

Later career and death

He was appointed surveyor of the port of Cincinnati by President Fillmore, serving in that role between May 2, 1849, and September 28, 1853. Between 1859 and 1862 he was President of the Cincinnati and Zanesville Railroad. He died in

Cincinnati, Ohio Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

on February 17, 1864, and was interred in

Spring Grove Cemetery Spring Grove Cemetery and Arboretum () is a nonprofit rural cemetery and arboretum located at 4521 Spring Grove Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio. It is the third largest cemetery in the United States, after the Calverton National Cemetery and Abraham L ...

References

1792 births 1864 deaths People from St. Mary's County, Maryland Politicians from Litchfield, Connecticut Politicians from Chillicothe, Ohio Politicians from Cincinnati Ohio lawyers Burials at Spring Grove Cemetery Ohio National Republicans Litchfield Law School alumni National Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives Whig Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Ohio 19th-century American politicians People from Ohio in the War of 1812 19th-century American lawyers {{Ohio-Representative-stub